Chickpea Spread

Since January…. my husband and I have been exploring the world of meat-free living. Just exploring. If you know me…. I am like the last person on the planet to ever give up meat. I mean… I love eating cows, duck, and goats…. and, chicken…. yum. My weakness is FRIED CHICKEN. Is fried chicken vegetarian? Please? Let’s see how many times I say, “fried chicken” in this post…. ha!

Anywho… This journey started back in December or January (can’t remember) when I watched Forks over Knives. Holy moly. That blew my mind. My veggie friends told me all about it and how it confirmed their choice to be vegetarian. I believe my response was, “What? I can’t hear you over all the animals I’m eating.” My husband was out with a friend one Saturday evening… and, my idea of a good time is watching documentaries (partay). I saw Forks Over Knives sitting there on my Netflix instant play… so, I watched it. I watched the whole thing jaw-to-the-floor.

Pretty much. It was amazing and it moved me to try and live a healthier life for myself and family. We have not gone veggie 100%. Nope. I just don’t think I’m ready to give up my fried chicken…. but, we have significantly changed things ’round here. We eat vegetarian about 4 – 5 days a week. WE sort of save the weekends to lose our minds and roll in piles of fried chicken. Is that a nice picture in your mind? Hee. But, in all seriousness: we have loved this adventure. We’ve been exploring many different veggie based recipes. Most of them contain quinoa, chickpeas, beans, and bulgar wheat. Those are full of protein… add some veggies and yum!

I personally do not enjoy any bit of cooking (i like baking). Well, I do have this fried chicken recipe that I love to cook… only because it brings me closer to fried chicken….. I have a sickness. I know. Even though I’m not a chef, i have tried my hand at a few recipes. I’ll share them with you guys soon! The best part is my kid loves the things I’ve made… AND, they have veggies… and SPINACH! I blend spinach into these two recipes I’ve made and Ruari just loves them so much. Me too! I’ll share them in the next couple weeks.

About the spread above: it’s a chickpea spread. A very simple yummy treat that can be kept in the fridge and is perfect for snack time. It’s blended with boiled chickpeas, roasted tomatoes, sautéed onions and garlic, and parsley. Blend it together with a bit of oil, salt, and pepper. We spread this yumminess on a whole grain tortilla. Its so good. AND again, Ruari loves it. Chickpeas are amazing and have a ton of protein. We usually purchase a big bag of chickpeas and soak the peas overnight and they are ready to cook up in the evening the next day. It’s hard to mess up this spread. Just add what you think sounds good. Yum!

So, how about you? Are you a diehard meat-eater? Or, do you prefer the veggie life? AND, have you seen Forks Over Knives? So good. Especially if you’re a documentary-nerd like myself. Fried chicken.

58 comments

my body is plant fueled. but not just any plants, i require organically and sustainably grown plants. i buy eggs and cheese for my family, but purchase them from local farmers where i can touch and see the animals from which they they come! these animals are all treated like a big farm family, so i think it is OK to feed my family their goodness. i have not seen forks over knives but even eating 95% plant – mostly raw at that (i rarely eat the eggs and cheese – those are mostly for my kids and husband), i still have high cholesterol. it's heriditary.

and, totally get a juicer. my kids and i love green (kale/spinach) juice (sweetened with apple or pineapple with carrots). YUMMY goodness.

I was veg when I got married to the world’s most meat chompin’ carnivore. We meet in the middle. We eat meat maybe 2 times a week . No red meat for me in the last 15 years but my fam will eat it about once a month while I’m at work. We eat an insane amount of meat in this country and I’m a cardiac nurse so I try to practice what I preach. I am so excited for your family’s desire for healthy eating and a bit of fried chicken here and there is your right as an American!

We eat meat probably every other day, although I would like to incorporate more veggie options in our diets…but like you, I'm more of a baker than a cooker so I'm really looking forward to when you share some of your awesome, new recipes! 😀

After a 20 year stint as veg, I ventured into meating six years ago. I am adventurous with my sampling but stick to the pansy meats (fish, poultry) for my regular diet. The one discovery that a dear friend shared with me: champagne + friend chicken. I know. Reads like an oenophile's nightmare, but I swear it is delicious. I do not even like fried chicken! But the sweet bubbles with the salty crunch is worth it. Enjoy your Saturday! 😉

Good for you!!!! I've been living veggie for the past 14 years!! But my reasons were different…you know how kids don't like
veggies…I was the opposite! I loved my veggies, it was the meat I couldn't stand! Finally when I turned 18 I said no more!!!
And no more it was!!!
Vegetarian food can be really good if seasoned properly, it's a lot healthier, and you're not eating those poor cute animal!!
Good luck with your adventure!!!

I love fried chicken as well! But, after my gall bladder surgery last fall, I just can't eat it without getting sick. So, I try to stay away from it. I haven't seen that documentary, but I plan to watch it now. I love meat, and at the same time have always been surprised that I haven't gone vegetarian since I love animals. Anyways, I love your blog, love your personality. I am originally from Tennessee, and am in Oregon this summer on an internship. So, I'm looking forward to getting to know your home state.

We started eating meatless at the beginning of the year. Since then, I've had chicken once and fish a handful of times.
We've decided to eat fish whenever we want, so we're pescatarians.
The thing I found is that buying organic, free-range and wild caught is the most important thing to do for your body. All the growth
hormones inside meat nowadays is sickening.

I can't wait for your recipes! I was a veggie for years and am now a half and half. I eat meat when I want to eat it and I often go days without it.
I do my best to buy the best meat I can buy. And then sometime sI eat McDonalds. I think it is best to pay attention to where your food comes from and try to make informed buying decisions. That's the best I can do :).

I've been vegan for about 6 years after taking a philosophy class on veganism. It explored all the reasons people become vegan, including environmental, cruelty to animals, health, humans, etc. Over the course of a year from that class, I became vegan (which I never thought that I would because it's super extreme) and here I am 6 years later. If you ever get stuck in a recipe rut, please let me know and I can pass some along. That chickpea spread sounds really yummy.

P.S. I wasn't a huge fried chicken fan like you were, but there is a recipe that I love to make that I think emulates fried chicken quite well. However, it does have a lot of steps. I can post it later. Love it! Especially with BBQ sauce.

We are the same way Chelsey! We eat vegetarian/vegan about 75 to 80% of the time and when we do eat animal products – we just eat A LOT less of them! Forks over Knives is an awesome documentary.
P.S. This place just opened in West Seattle that is supposed to have life-changing fried chicken. I have to forward you the article. They only make 30 fried chickens a night and you have to order the whole chicken for the table. Serious!

I was interested in going vegetarian – just for fun. Then I saw Forks Over Knives when it came out in certain theaters last April.
Needless to say the hubby and I switch from a meat-eating diet to a VEGAN diet at aaaabout the time the credits rolled. It also sparked my insane interest in nutrition. I've been studying for a year now and am officially working towards my nutritional counseling certificate as well as a Bachelors degree in holistic health. Being vegan was the best decision we made for our family's health and for our planet's health. I'm still as passionate about it today as I was a year ago and am even more with every bit of nutrition info I absorb.

It is SO awesome that you guys are going veggie a few times a week. I wish everyone would go veggie at least once a week. Actually I wish everyone would go veggie all the time but I will start small 😉

Thanks for getting the word out about the documentary – I'm a documentary nut as well. My dad and I actually go on community documentary dates every week. And then rent 3-5 more documentaries from their library to watch throughout the week. So of course the hubby gets dragged into the action as well 😛

wow i hadn't even heard of this documentary! one to add to my list. i recently watched earthlings and that has stopped my every other month meat eating. i just can't do it anymore. it wasnt that big of a step for me though since i was already 90% there. off to soak some chickpeas!

I love documentaries but haven't seen this one yet. I will check it out! My husband & I tried going vegetarian & stuck
with it for a few months. Food Inc, was one movie we saw that helped us stick with it for a while!
We did end up starting to eat meat again because we were having a hard time finding good food to
make. The only meat I do eat now is chicken & turkey. Although, I bet if I watched one of these movies again
I would go back to eating vegetarian!

I love being vegan! I've been vegan for almost 7 years, with 5 years vegetarian before that. Before you know it, you're a more adventurous eater than you ever could imagine. Plus, the longer you're veg, the less you even think about meat. However, if you really love meat, have you ever tried any of the Gardein meat alternatives? Shockingly good.

Ha! I was vegan back in the dark ages, seriously it felt like one of those walk a mile in the snow each way to grab some tofu stories, but then I succumbed to a carnivore life for several years. I'm back on the vegan bandwagon here in Portland though. There's so much imitation stuff out there, though to be honest the skin part of fried chicken is HARD to imitate BUT if you freeze, thaw and press a block of tofu / make some batter and fry it crispy you can have *fried tofu chicken*. The secret is to press the tofu between HEAVY objects and squish out the water after you thaw it. Also if you prepare and baste, baste, baste a tofurky it takes close to turkey which is chicken's cousin 🙂

I am SO excited for you, Chelsey! I first went vegetarian when I was in high school, then went back to being a pescetarian for many years, but I went full on vegan last July (9 months ago already??? wow), and I've NEVER been happier or felt better about my life and diet choices than I do now. It's been an incredible transformation for me. I wasn't able to go vegan before I was ready, though, and I can't tell you that it was anything beyond "one day I just woke up and WAS READY, even though I never knew I was preparing."

I am a very good and inventive cook, and cooking is like therapy to me, so I think that makes it easier. My husband is an omnivore but loves what I cook. I live in the most liberal place in the universe (San Francisco) so it is so easy to find vegan options and supportive people. I know that a lot of people think I am insane, but I can't deny what its done for my physical & mental health. I didn't watch Forks Over Knives until several months into this journey, but it only reiterated what I've experienced. I am a happy vegan camper these days! 😀

I love this post! And Forks Over Knives! Our family is vegetarian and it's great, even though my husband is in total denial about the whole thing. Haha! Even though he never eats meat he still considers himself a meat eater. I guess its his German heritage and long history with bratwurst. It's kind of my greatest victory in life to have somehow convinced him to raise our son without meat. Viva la plant based diet!! 🙂

I eat meat, but my 2 year old does not. She doesn't eat much of anything these days. I'm super excited for you to post some recipes so I can try them out! You crack me up with your fried chicken obsession… I kinda feel the same way. 🙂

I just love your blog. I haven’t been following for very long, but I just love it! You seem like a fun person and someone that anyone would want to be friends with… Especially me! Hee hee… Congrats on your blog success! Oh yeah… Fried chicken 😉

Ha! I think I counted “fried chicken” like 7490 times in that post. And yes I am a meat eater. I would watch that documentary but I’m not sure that I want to be swayed in my meat eating, not even a little bit. So I’ll let you eat mostly veggie dishes while I eat lots of FRIED CHICKEN! 😉

it’s a veggie life at our house. i make THE VERY BEST black bean burgers, all the yum & no regret. my kids love animals and so do i. it’s so much healthier and better for the planet. we still eat dairy & eggs, but we have vegan nights, so that is the realm that we are exploring.

the very best way to get those veggies in is green juice & green smoothies. they are like the elixir of life. get little ruari hooked on those early on.

have not seen forks over knives, but you are the second person to recommend it this week.

Yum! That looks awesome!!! I haven't seen Forks Over Knives yet. I decided to go vegan after reading The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone… and maybe I had no idea what it was about and knew she was a hottie and wanted to follow whatever 'diet' she was on LOL. Well who knew it would turn me vegan for a year! I dropped about 25 lbs and felt amazing! But I, like you, do love the fried chicken… and 2 yrs later I'm back on the meat and dairy. I just LOVE fro yo. But I think in my vegan lifestyle I picked up some good habits that have remained after the meat/dairy came back. You're making your family so healthy incorporating the veggie and bean dishes. You'r awesome!

I LOVE documentaries! And have been dieing to watch that movie, yet freakishly afraid to watch it. ya know? I have been exploring meat free living as well since the end of 2011, and unfortunately my husband has added meat back in, because he can't live without it, and I don't cook. but I felt great being meat free! And I thoroughly enjoyed the couple meals a week where I had meat! I am actually debating taking over the cooking again to do more healthy meat free, no processed food… but there is just a part of me that doesn't want to cook any more, ok that is all of me, and a part of me that wants to be healthier and would start cooking again.

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